While N.C. state legislators prepared to convene at the General Assembly Tuesday afternoon, a group of sweatband and Nike-clad activists assembled outside to run a .5K around the Halifax Mall—backwards.
The event was held to protest the “backwards” state budget, specifically the deep cuts made last year to K-12, Medicaid and early education programs.
The race was organized by Together NC, a collection of nonprofit organizations, service providers and professional associations that press state leaders to maintain and build upon public investments. While the recently passed House budget plan included some new funding for such programs, the group believes that the funding doesn’t go far enough to restore cuts made in last year’s budget that have “set our state on a path towards mediocrity.”
The event attracted about a hundred runners of varying ages, each of whom was given a backwards race number, keeping with the theme that things in North Carolina are “running backwards.”
The winner of the race was Alexandra, who ran on behalf of the Save Tobacco Reality Unfiltered campaign and the NC Alliance for Health.
See video of the race:
(Story and Video by Graham Anson)
